Hi, I’ve been meaning to make a travel-friendly ergonomic keyboard setup for a couple years ago after starting /r/ergomobilecomputers, so far just been on a raised tablet setup with a regular keyboard (a setup I’ve enjoyed, but will confess I’ve some slight pain from using a standard keyboard with it)
What kinds of recovery stories have you experienced yourself or heard from others in using a certain ergomechkeyboard?
Were there things outside of having a more ergonomic setup that helped (i.e. just better sleep, diet, hygiene, mood) too?
Basically curious to hear some stories of how these things have helped fellow jank-embracers!
I did try searching around the original sub for ‘pain’ and ‘rsi’ but feel like it may be worth asking again on here.
UPDATE: Thanks again for all the stories so far both here and on the related reddit thread! Made me revise a brainstorm keyboard idea that could facilitate redirecting pinky use on the left control key + right arrow keys to something that uses the thumb + index finger instead.
I started to get pain in my forearms when learning to touch type, after almost two decades of two finger, hen peck typing 😳
After using a Microsoft Ergonomic keyboard I noticed a massive improvement, within a short space of time, in that forearm pain was eliminated and negative tilt was just unquestionably comfortable. I complimented this gradually with retraining muscle memory for Colemak-DH (functional layout), and correcting my desk height and chair height for correct posture.
The Microsoft Ergonomic keyboard has been “quietly retired” in favour of split bodied, programmable, ergonomic mechanical keyboards that further increase ergonomics and continue to prevent pain in my forearms.
Suffice to say I’ll never go back to a “slab” keyboard nor positive tilting. It’s perplexing to me and an oversight by the peripheral industry that truly ergonomic design for Human Input Devices (term encompasses keyboards and pointing devices) hasn’t become mainstream or standardised, given the medical benefits and general sensibility 🤷♂️
Yes. Besides keyboards, adjusting my desk and chair and even monitor (VESA arm) has been amazing.
On the topic of HID, that also extends to Braille displays and keyboards which are, for some reason, consistently more ergonomic.
Check out the eight big blue keys on the Focus 14, for an example: a proto-columnar stagger.